“The Written Word, Mind-Grazing and
The Binding Commitment” During my study of early Howard Thurman, I already acclaimed his authorship. Through his education, speaking engagements also his travels; one could sense the papers, books that was inside him. There was so much more he had to say that could not be done in sermons, speeches etc. However, in “The Written Word,” a series of lectures for the American Friends’ Service Committee at Howard University changed how he thought of himself as a writer; it was the true beginning of his authorship. A young lady asked for his help in the interpretation of the thirteenth chapter of I Corinthians from the Bible (Thurman 215). Therefore, what I gleaned from this reading was the love the young…show more content… I sense Thurman casually sampling the road of life that inspired him to move forward. From remembering the great depression to Madison, Florida where his grandma lived on a plantation, one can image the struggles of the mind for him. Years later still living in the mist discrimination also segregation; he could visualize his grandma’s pilgrimage. Visiting Jacksonville opened his eyes, mind and thought to a glimmer of hope for a better way of life. His uncle planted the seed of success in Thurman as a young child with having his own bakery business. There is one thing for sure, the family believed in in going to church, however, he had no memory of the service only the building. These along with other past events relates to his life’s work in numerous ways (Thurman 228-233). At the same time, Thurman’s thoughts of “Mind-Grazing” is chewing ideas of all he lived through as an adult as well. “He lived through the first and second World Wars, witnessed the Women’s suffrage victory, the development of the atom and hydrogen bombs and nuclear weapons of mass destruction. He knew of the bombings of Pearl Harbor, the devastation of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The silent movie era and the advent of television were born during Thurman’s early years. So was the development of Henry Ford’s model T automobile and the Wright brother’s historic airplane flight. Thurman lived through the…show more content… A key point, throughout his life he pledged himself to God emotionally and intellectually. It is not easy to walk completely away from the work you have spent forty years doing especially when called by the Creator. In leadership there will come a time of decision making that will question ones commitment. Sometime we don’t understand why at the time, still as life unfolds, we observe the full picture and understand by and by. Howard Thurman knew there was a strong call on his life that he could not escape (Thurman 259-264). It was momentous to him to prepare a difference in the way African Americans saw academics, spiritual disciplines and social ethics. Spiritually grounded, the Word of God became part of him, as well as, The Howard Thurman Trust. Having a binding commitment with both retirement was really on the back burner simmering. This man had a true zeal for the religious experience also marked for the cause. As a result, he was never cut off from the sense of guidance, why? In Proverbs 16:3 “Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed.” In fact, Thurman could have dedicated his work only cursorily, saying the work is done for the Lord, however, doing it for himself. Instead, it is clear what kept him was the sure knowledge that he was committed to a single pilgrimage, disclosure of the Will of God (Thurman